India’s Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto were on the verge of elimination soon after suffering a second successive defeat in the group stage of the women’s doubles badminton competition at the Paris Olympics on Monday. The Indians lost 11-21 12-21 to world number four Japanese pair Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida in the 48-minute Group C match. They lost their opener against Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong of South Korea South. Ponnappa and Crasto, number 19 in the world, are currently third in their group, behind the Japanese and South Koreans.
The two best-ranked pairs in each group qualify for the quarterfinals.
“A little disappointed because that was the only chance we had to get to the quarters. It wasn’t the way we wanted to play, but they were very strong. I wish we had given them a better fight. We have one more match and I hope we can win “, said Ponnappa after the game.
“They were very strong, offensively and defensively. Defensively we were a little deficient today, which cost us some points. Offensively, when we were attacking, we could have capitalized a little more,” he added.
The Indians were unable to put pressure on their opponents as they never managed to take the lead or even draw.
The Japanese duo, on the other hand, took control of the match from the start, taking a 4-0 lead after Crasto scored a long rally.
The experienced Ponnappa struck to earn India’s first point and Crasto followed suit with a body blow to make it 2-7.
But from then on it was mostly one-way traffic as the Japanese continued to increase their lead to win the game.
The Indians were under pressure from the start of the second game as the Japanese took a 7-1 lead.
To make matters worse for the Indians, Crasto injured his finger and needed medical attention.
Crasto and Ponnappa then added three consecutive points, but the Japanese crushed the Indians’ momentum.
Matsuyama and Shida’s quick court coverage, coordination and effective combination of power and positioning proved too much for the Indian duo and in the end, the Japanese had nine match points.
Ponnappa and Crasto will face Australians Setyana Mapasa and Angela Yu in the last group match.
“There’s a lot to learn. It’s boosted my confidence because we’re playing at such a high level and giving each pair a fight. It takes a lot of courage and confidence to play here in front of so many people. It’s not over for us yet, I hope we can survive”, said Crasto.
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